


PULSE

by Otaku_Girl2176



Category: One Piece
Genre: Alive Thatch (One Piece), Amnesia, Angst, Kurohige | Blackbeard | Marshall D. Teach Dies, M/M, Misunderstandings, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Out of Character, Sad with a Happy Ending, What-If, probably
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-15
Updated: 2021-01-12
Packaged: 2021-03-08 22:27:23
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 12,989
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27024271
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Otaku_Girl2176/pseuds/Otaku_Girl2176
Summary: Ace saved Thatch and managed to kill Teach just before passing out. But due to lies and misunderstandings, he's been deemed a traitor.
Relationships: Fushichou Marco | Phoenix Marco & Portgas D. Ace, Fushichou Marco | Phoenix Marco/Portgas D. Ace, Izou/Thatch (One Piece), Portgas D. Ace & Whitebeard Pirates
Comments: 68
Kudos: 181





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this a few years ago, but never really got around to it until now. My need for a different outcome is back.  
> May or may not be continued

"Why did you do it, yoi?" Marco's stone cold voice echoed in the darkness. "Why." His voice, a breathy whisper. 

"I didn't!" Ace shouted desperately, voice horsed. He had been screaming the same line ever since he woke up and found Marco with him. Only, instead of white walls and the sent of pain killers, he woke up in a dark place. He woke up in Mody Dick's brig. 

For almost a month now, Marco had been following the same routine. Wake up from a restless sleep, do paper work, check on oyaji, then the crew and then back to the infirmary to see Thatch. And just before someone came to trow him out of the infirmary, Marco would go down to the deepest parts of the ship, the prison cells, and question Ace. Over and over and over again.

And as for Ace, he wakes up with blood in his mouth and a hole in his stomach. With no one to talk to, and no sunlight. Ace wakes up to a plate of leftover food someone managed to sneek in for him. He eats every bit of it, though harder with seastone cuffs. He stays up in the dark, alone. Until someone in a mask brings him food and water. It isn't enough...but it keeps him alive. Every night, Ace reassures and comforts the man who gives him comfort. And just before he falls asleep, Marco would come down...and Ace hopes...but it's all the same...Marco would ask why he hurt Thatch, when he didn't... Marco would throw him against the wall and pin him down, talents piercing his skin and crying out "Why?!" Not sparing a moment for Ace to catch his breath.

The same routine happened over and over and over again...  
Wake up, paper work, check on crew, check on Thatch, question Ace, sleep.

Wake up, eat, talk, drink, hide the dishes, Marco comes, hurt, sleep.

As for the rest of the crew, Izo was still in denial. He couldn't believe Ace had hurt Thatch. But then, why would Teach lie to them? Ace had killed Teach, so they couldn't ask him...all there was left to do, was wait until Thatch woke up...  
Izo, like Marco, had barely ate. Thatch meant so much to him...he only wished for Thatch to wake up. Maybe then...

As for the other commanders, Haruta was torn and broken. Both of his best friends weren't with him...he felt lost...   
The older commanders were able to pull it together and keep the ship sailing, but it was hard...so so hard...

As for Whitebeard, he was heartbroken. Why has his son betrayed him? Was it Ace? Or could it have been Teach? If so, then why? He couldn't see any reason for either Ace or Teach to betray them...

The Moby hadn't been so quite since they first got it. The deafening silence was depressing... No one talked about it, so most didn't understand, but everyone kept remembering that night...that night when everything went down hill...

.

..

...

Flashback~~

Almost everyone woke up to a loud explosion. Commander Marco, Jozu, Vista and Haruta were the first to have reached the top deck.

What they saw made them sick.

Thatch was lying in a pool of blood, he had a few burn marks, but there was clearly a stab wound. The devil fruit he had found was lying at a corner.

Ace and Teach were fighting. Until Teach saw the crew. He yelled, "Ace hurt Thatch!!!" 

But while he was distracted, Ace snuck up on him and slit his throat with his dagger. That definitely killed Teach, but just as Teach's body fell, Ace's did too.

Just then, the entire ocean shook. Whitebeard had seen the end of the fight, and he was furious.

Marco ran towards Thatch and found a pulse, he then ordered the others to get Thatch to the infirmary.

As for Teach and Ace... Marco didn't know what to do. Izo picked up the fruit and followed the others towards the infirmary. Haruta and half the crew stood frozen shock on deck. All Marco wanted do, was seek comfort from his oyaji. But he couldn't. As first mate and second in command, he had to be strong.

He orded his brothers to see if Ace was alive and to redy a funeral for Teach. And once Ace was confirmed alive, he orded them...to trow him in the brig...

His orders were obeyed.

Flashback End~~

.

..

...

It has almost been a month since... The doctors said that Thatch has been showing signs of waking up, they just don't know exactly when he'll be waking up.

It was the best news the crew had in weeks. Normally with good news comes crazy parties, but no one was in the mood to celebrate just yet. There was still a dark shadow apon the crew.

___________________________________

On the 30th night, Marco brought Thatch his favorite hair gel when he came to visit him in the infirmary. He set it aside and started talking. Many think those in comas can still hear those around them, many more believe that it's true.

Marco didn't know if he believes Thatch can hear him or not, but it doesn't stop him, or anyone else from talking to their sleeping brother. 

Izo came in looking much better than he did the past three weeks. He still had bags under his eyes, but he also had a light layer of makeup too. "Deuce managed to convince me to take a shower. Said I wouldn't want to knock Thatch back out once he wakes up with my unholy stench." 

For the first time in 4 weeks, Marco smiled. It wasn't a smile that reached his eyes, but it was a smile. It was gone as soon as it came though.

Izo sighed and sat down on the other chair beside Thatch's bed, "So, I heard Whitely is coming."

Marco nodded and sighed too, "Pops has been drinking more than he usually does. No one can blame him, but the nurses are getting worried, yoi."

Izo nodded, "I heard Little Oars Jr. Is coming too."

"He is. As well as Doma, Squard and the DeCalvan Brothers, yoi."

Izo nodded once more.   
"Why do you think they're coming?"

Marco sighed, and got up. He left after one last glance at Thatch.

Looks like he's going to visit Ace sooner today...

...

..

.

Marco walked into the brig, and was surprised to see another there. It was Deuce. Of course he'd be here, he was in Ace's former crew, as first mate...  
Does that mean that the rest of the Spade pirates aren't to be trusted? 

He hid back and listened to their conversation.

"...Deuce..."

"No! It was you who rescued me from Sixis, you who built up our crew, our Spade! It's unfair how they're treating you! And...it's so wrong...I already know that you're not a traitor...why can't they see that? They're supposed to be family...we're supposed to be family..."

There was a pause, where neither spoke, only looked to the ground. It was dirty, and looked worst than Moby 2 had after it got submerged in water and goo. The place stank too, but they got used to it.

"Deuce..." Ace said, breaking the silence, but he was cut off by said man.

"We're loyal to you." 

From the other side, Marco could tell that Deuce was locking eyes with Ace.

"Me, and the rest of the Spades...we're loyal to you. Even if Whitebeard is our oyaji, we'll die with you, Ace. We'd all be dead if it wasn't for you anyway."

Ace huffed. "Dumbasses. Don't die for me. If you really feel that way, then live for me. I still love this crew, ya know? Both Spade, and Whitebeard...you all have a home here, don't throw it away for a..." Ace stopped and sighed, "Don't throw it all away...for me..."

There was chain movement, before Deuce pressed his head onto the cold bars, "Don't die...you promised Luffy too...so please?" 

He sounded pathetic. Pleading.

But neither Ace, nor Marco saw it that way.

"Deuce..." 

"Don't...OK? We'll miss you, cry for you, die for you, and live for you. So...stay alive..."

With that, Deuce got up, and left, he saw Marco leaning on the wall with his eyes closed at the entrance. He wanted to glare, but he felt all the energy drained from his body, so he left silently, only pausing his way out, with a simple, "Don't."

...

..

.

Marco stood there for another minute after Deuce left, to think things over...

Ace...Ace has such loyal nakama...why would he betray us like this? Why? 

Marco just couldn't understand it...

"I know you're there..." Ace voiced out weakly. "You're just gonna stand there all day in the dark? Come on...we both know this place ruffles your inner birdy~"

Marco frowned, and went over towards Ace. Ace was leaning back on the cold steel bars. His head was leaning on it too, with his arms and legs chained up to the back of the wall. 

His tattoo was in full view for Marco, even in the dim lighting, lit by a single candle, Marco could see it. It was one of Izo's best works.

And it made Marco's blood boil to see it on one who had killed one of his brothers, and crucially injured another. 

"Why, yoi." Marco's voice, once again echoed the same words in the bitter darkness.

How many times has he said the same line? How many days since he had started with a different line towards Ace? Why...why did it have to be Ace? 

"I didn't-" Ace tried, weakly, almost flimsy with a touch of surrender in his voice, that was cut off by a loud bang, and Marco's own voice.

"Stop lying, yoi!" Marco and banged his arms on the steel bars, as he let the words explode. "We gave you a home! We gave you a family! A father to call your own! Brothers and sisters who would die for you! We loved you as our own! Abd you fucking betrayed us!! Literally stabbed us in the back! You-" Marco took a breath, "You monster." The words dripped with hatred. And Ace's already broken heart shattered, he never thought those words...would come out of Marco's mouth...not at him...not ever...and yet...  
Ace's broken laughter echoed in the small space, it annoyed Marco to no end, the blonde opend the cell and grabbed Ace by the hair, slamming his face onto the bars, "What's so funny, yoi?" He hissed. 

"Th-that's the truth isn't it?" Ace coughed out, "I am a monster." His voice broke at the end, but Marco didn't notice, didn't let himself notice. Instead, the blonde trew Ace's chained body away, as if he were trash, and swiftly kicked him in the ribs, cracking sounds were heard, but Marco couldn't hear it from how angered he was. In his point if view, Ace had basically admitted to being a traitor, even though he wasn't. But Marco didn't know that.

Ace gasped for air that his lungs couldn't get, the next kick sent his body crashing harshly onto the bars again, his wrists were bleeding from all the pulling from the chains. Every part of Ace hurt, his wounds were hurting so much, none of them had had the chance to heal at all. It was...painful.

Marco grabbed him by the hair again and slammed his face on to the floor, holding him in a death grip, he was about to scream something, but a member from first division bursted in, making the entrance door slam hard against the wall, he shouted, "THATCH IS AWAKE!!!"

And with those words, Marco let go of Ace and ran out with the other, towards Thatch in the infirmary.

In the darkness, all alone, Ace was overjoyed. 'Thatch! Thatch! Thatch!! Thatch is awake!!' He thought, 'I was able to save him on time afterall... he's alright...I'm so glad...' Tears welded up in Ace's eyes as he smiled, but he couldn't move an inch from where he layed, 'I want to see him...I want to hear the sounds of a party again...I want to punch Marco and prank the whole ship with Thatch and Haruta again...I want to go on more adventures with everyone... I want to see Luffy...see his dream come true...I want to tell them...that I love them...' Ace tried to get up, but he could tell that his broken ribs had punctured his lungs, he could tell that his heart was no longer beating as strongly and that his vision wasn't quite as clear as it was before. But even so... 'I want to see the sky...the ocean...one last time...but I guess, I shouldn't keep Sabo waiting...' Ace smiled withhis eyes closed, imagining running through the forest with his two younger brothers...

...

..

.

In the infirmary~~

Thatch was being hugged by a sobbing Izo, who kept a mind on Thatch's injuries, Oyaji and the rest of the commanders were already there, crying tears of joy when Marco ran into the room. Apon seeing his beat friend, he felt the relief wash over him as he stumbled towards Thatch's bed side to hug his brother. Thatch was laughing, his voice was hoarse, but the water Izo had given him beforehand helped a lot.

The joyous atmosphere was broken when Deuce barged into the room shouting for others to get off him, a couple division brothers were holding the masked man back as he turned towards Thatch, "Tell them!!" He pleaded, "Tell them Ace is innocent!!! Please, Thatch, tell them!!!" His words made Thatch realise his youngest brother wasn't in the room with them, and that made him frown.

"Where's Ace?" He asked, sounding genuinely confused.

"They trew him in the brig!!" Deuce stated, braking free from the two that were holding him back.

The shock and horror that washed over Thatch's face made everyone's stomach drop. That was when they knew, they fucked up.

The next moments were of Thatch frantically yelling about how Ace had saved him, and how Teach was the traitor.  
But Marco was out, sprinting as fast as he could as soon as Thatch had exclaimed Ace's innocence.

Marco cursed himself when he got to the opened doors of the brig, he had so much apologising to do, he'd even let Ace fucking kill him if it'd make Ace feel slightly better. But when he saw Ace...

He felt as if someone had opened a hole in his chest. Ace was smilling with his eyes closed on the floor, but...he was covered in blood...in fact, the whole cell was covered in blood...

Marco snapped out of it in two seconds and picked Ace up, burying his body in blue flames, he ignored the fact that Ace wasn't breathing and rushed back towards the infirmary. He could see Whiteley's ship at the corner of his eye right next to the Moby, and he hoped that she could save Ace.

As Marco was rushing towards the infirmary, the faces of the brothers around him went from relieved joyfulness, to shocked, sickening horror. And Marco couldn't blame them...not when there was a trail of blood right behind him.

He got to the infirmary and went straight to the ER, yelling out Whitely's name, she followed him, calling for her surgeons to follow her.

He didn't dare face oyaji or his fellow commanders, not after what he had done...

The last thing he heard before the door closed, was Deuce's desperate, horrified scream of Ace's name.

___________________________


	2. Memories

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To all those that had commented and asked whether or not there would be a part 2: I'm very sorry for not responding, I didn't want to give any false promises. Writing this was hard, I'd break down as soon as I thought about the next part, of all the suffering. But here it is. I hope you'll enjoy it.

Marco prayed, and prayed some more. He wasn't a religious man, and had his doubts on god, but if there was one, he hoped that they would heed his pleas.

His flames burned brightly, even in the well lit room, they couldn't heal others the same way they healed him, but every bit counted. Even if Ace's heart was no longer beating, his flames could give his body a few vital minutes.

Whitely's face was blank as she and her surgeons worked on Ace, her hands were steady, and her words precise. But Marco knew, that she'd kill him afterwards, whether or not Ace lived.

They opened up Ace's wounded chest to get to his ribs, lungs and heart. The sight was sickening, all of Ace's ribs were either fractured, or broken. 5 of them pierced his lungs, one came dangerously close to his heart, but by some miracle, just barely missed it.

They worked fast and efficiently. Moving Ace's ribs, Whiteley's surgeons pulled each rib carefully but swiftly out of Ace's lungs, as another would inserted what looked to be tubes into him, Marco's medical knowledge was lacking in this field, but he trusted his brothers and sister.

"Get the blood bags! 4 of them!" Whiteley instructed, "Get ready, mask over his mouth and nose!"

What Whiteley did next made Marco suppress a shiver. "Commencing Resurrection." She had Ace's heart in her right hand, as she started pressing and releasing it in a steady rhythm, making it pump blood throughout Ace's body again. The surgeons around Ace stiched Ace up quicker than how Izo stitches clothes, IV drops and 4 blood bags were inserted into Ace even though he was still cut open.

The sight of Ace breathing on his own again...of his heart **beating** on it's own again...made Marco let out a breath of relieve.

"Get his lungs closed up as much as plausible, check on his digestive system, and get Marco out of here, he's not needed." Whitely's words held no emotion, but it felt as if she had dunked him in ice water.

It was clear to him, that she wanted nothing to do with him for a while, and who could blame her?...not after what he had done to Ace, someone who Whitely saw as a son of her own...

Marco said nothing as he walked towards the door, flames already gone. He braced himself to face his family, and didn't expect to be shown any mercy what so ever. He didn't deserve it.

But they were quiet when he got out of the ER, except for a few gasps. That's when he noticed that he was covered in blood. Ace's blood, and he kept his head down.

A silence hung in the air, no one moving, just...staring...at each other, at the floor, or at Marco.

Pops was the one to break the eerie silence, "Marco, son?" Marco flinched, and looked up at his father's voice, but he didn't dare meet his eyes, nor the eyes of his fellow commanders, his brothers, "How is he?" His voice was soft, without anger, but commanding nonetheless.

"He's alive, yoi." Marco's reply was just loud enough for them to hear.

He heard sighs of relief from all except one, Deuce. Instead of a sigh of relief, he got up from a chair by the side, eyes boring into Marco's skull, demanding his attention, and asked, in the coldest voice, dripping in disgust, "What did you do to him, phoenix?" His moniker was practically **spat** out.

Never before had Marco felt so ashamed and disgusted at himself. He couldn't bring himself to hang his head, nor could he denie anyone of the truth...  
And so he told them...  
He told them of what he had done during his visits to Ace, of how he'd throw Ace's body around, of how he'd claw into him, not listening to his words as he falsely accused him of betrayal. Of how Ace had **died** mear moments ago...  
He told them about how his ribs were all either fractured or broken, he told them of how his lungs were punctured, he told them of the blood bags, of the bruises on Ace's skin, of how Whitely needed to hold his heart in her hand to resurrect him, and of how they were still operating on him now.

As he talked, he could feel his family's hurt and disappointment grow. He felt as if cold was an understatement on how he felt, he knew he deserved the death penalty, he had **killed** one of their own afterall, and that was against the rules...

He expected for them to come at him all at once, but instead, they shifted tearstained eyes to Deuce. And for the first time, Marco saw the blue haired man break inside.

Deuce's eyes were shut tight, he was shaking and his hands were fisted so tightly his knuckles went white and his nails dug into his skin, causing his palms to bleed. He took a deep breath and looked straight at Marco, before marching straight for him and punching him square in the face.

Marco saw it coming of course, and allowed for his fist to make contact, he had gritted his teeth and held back his flames as best as he could, but like always, his flames bursted forth, healing his wounds.

Deuce was visibly holding back tears, but he was failing with each word he choked out, "You're a fucking disappointment, phoenix. Ace is one of the most kindest pirate you'll ever meet, one of the most trustworthy and untrusting person out there and you have no idea, no bloody clue on how much Ace trusted you...You," he spat with disgust, "Who finally convinced him, who made him open up to this hypocritical crew and supported him when he was made a dammed commander! You who he respected, who he **STILL** respects and follows around! HE FUCKING LOVES YOU AND YOU KILLED HIM! YOU FUCKING KILLED HIM YOU MOTHER FUCKING PIECE OF SHIT!!!!" His outburst was expected, but Vista had to drag the argument outside.

Their borthers and sister needed to work on Ace still, and causing them unnecessary distractions could be fatal for their youngest.

Thatch had to stay in bed, Izo and Haruta stayed behind with him, the youngest of the three was staring at the door to the ER with teary, overflowing eyes.

Outside, a crowd of brothers had formed, most were confused on what was happening, while others begged their commanders for information on how their brothers were doing, if Ace was alive...

"LET GO OF ME!" Deuce yelled out.

"CALM DOWN! WE ALL KNOW HOW YOU FEEL, BUT MAKING A RUCKUS WILL ONLY CAUSE MORE PROBLEMS!!" Vista commanded.

"He's right, Deuce, get a hold of yourself!!" Blamencho interjected.

"We understand you're mad! We are too!!" Rakuyo added, "But-"

"YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND HOW I FEEL!! NONE OF YOU DO!!" Deuce exclamed.

"Son-" Whitebeard tried.

"DON'T! Don't EVER call me your son again." Deuce snarled coldly at Whitebeard. He could never see this man, this powerful yonko, as his father ever again.

Tears were in Deuce's eyes, while pain was in everyone else's. Deuce's words caused an uneasy silence, tension so thick some were scared to breath.

When the blue haired man next spoke, it was in an almost defeated tone, just loud enough to get caught in the wind, and travel to the ears of those who were there. "What have you all done?" He laxed in Vista's hold, "You kidnapped him...made him open up enough to join this crew, showed him so much love, gave him responsibility over 100 men, and then...you labeled him a traitor...you left him to **starve** in a cold cell, you left him to Marco, you left him...in the dark...To **_die_**..." his voice broke at the end, making the faces of many paled, while some brothers were openly gaping in horror, "We let him die..." high pitch, with tears streaming down his face, Deuce stared in the eyes of Whitebeard.

The next seconds were of bone chilling, painful realization...Vista's grip had loosened, and Deuce ran away from them...  
He ran and ran, straight to the back of the ship, where he fell to his knees, gripping the railings and shattered into a broken mess.

His sobs grew louder, until he was practically screaming hysterically, but they got mixed in with those from behind him, from the pirates who called him brother.

He felt so weak, so useless...he knew he wasn't getting Ace enough food or water, knew Ace needed medicine, knew Ace needed him there with him longer, he fucking knew Ace needed more clothing, something to keep the chill away since he was bound with sea stone, he knew!! But...he couldn't get them...he couldn't get more of anything, he couldn't stay with Ace, couldn't steal or give Ace his own clothes...Maybe if he had tried harder he could have...but everyone was keeping such strong grips on his neck, he couldn't do anything without someone watching him...they thought he couldn't be trusted either...and...and it made things so hard...

He wanted to stay with Ace...he'd be there to warm him up, to hold and give reassurance, to love...

But he knew that wouldn't have been allowed...

Not only would the crew had not allowed Deuce to stay with his former captain, but Ace's heart was taken, and never given back...

But...he still loves him anyway... even though, deep inside, he knows he wouldn't have been able to protect Ace from Marco, knows he would've only made it worst...

So he begs...he begs the sky, an unseen celestial being for help. "Not him...p-please...not Ace...please..." he looked up, through teary eyes, "If you're real, if you're w-watching, please, I'm begging you...save him...save Ace...h-he doesn't deserve to die...please don't take him away...I...I need him...I won't be selfish about it, so please, just save him...save him, save him, save him, save him! I...I love him..."

And how could he not?...  
Ace was his sun, his light in the dark. Ace, who he had distrusted when he found out his father was none other than Gol D. Roger, became someone irreplaceable in his heart...

Even though he was weak and undeserving of Ace, Ace trusted him with his life! How could he not fall for someone...who shown so brightly?

...

..

.

_'But even if he woke up, it wouldn't be the same...would it?'_

.

..

...

The sun was setting by the time Nemur found Deuce. The masked man was still on his knees, hunched over, **begging** an unseen diety for Ace to survive.

The fishman approached slowly, and called out his name. But Deuce didn't respond, he did so again several times, before he decided to straight out give him the good news, "The surgery was a success! Ace will be alright!"

With those words, Deuce's head shot up and around so fast that the fishman feared he might have gotten a whiplash, "He's alright?" The masked man whispered, "He's **ALRIGHT**?!" He practically hissed, eyes wide with a smile on his face that spelled 'Crazy, stay back!'

Deuce got up from his position on deck, and stumbled over to Nemur, "Y-yeah...Whiteley said he'll live...A-and she doesn't make jokes!" Nemur added the last part in a rush.

The psychotic laugh that left Deuce's lips after his words were spoken made Nemur shiver in slight worry and fear. "People who die, and stay **dead** for longer than 3 minutes get brain damage that isn't fully recoverable." The chuckle he let out at the end was one full of pain and lost, one of down right madness and it just sounded so...wrong...

But then Deuce fell to his knees right in front of Nemur, whose face was twisted in agony...

In their worry...in their joy...they had forgotten about that very important detail...people don't just walk away from death...Ace might get memory loss, maybe nerve damage, he might be disabled... and his lungs...would they heal?

...

Would he even wake up?

The two started crying again, with Nemur helping the other up, "Let's... let's at least go see him breathe?" Nemur suggested.

Deuce only nodded, and they both stumbled towards the infirmary, Deuce leaning on Nemur.

.

..

...

~~ ** _After Deuce ran_** ~~

The deck was silent for a few seconds after Deuce's words, before the brothers that had seen Ace's torn up, broken form while Marco rushed him to the infirmary suddenly started falling to their knees, some started crying, some clung to each other, some just looked out of it, while the majority who hadn't known much begged their commanders for an explanation.

Within the chaos, Marco stepped up and admitted his actions, how he had down right tortured Ace...and killed him. The deck had silenced and crowded even more with his confession, and with it, came the outrage. Some of them begged their pops and first division commander to tell them that it was just a terrible prank, a mistake, a miscommunication, while others stood still, teary wide eyes and the beginnings of a breakdown, they couldn't believe it... Couldn't believe, that their kind first mate, understanding and cool headed first mate, would kill the person that he had so openly loved...

But perhaps it was because of that, that Marco couldn't see reason...

Marco then proceeded to talk about the Whitebeard Pirate's most upheld rule, that killing one of their own would mean death, and so, Marco told them to, "Kill me, yoi."

And even though many had felt where the conversation was going, they still were shocked by his words...

But just before anything could happen, Jozu had punched Marco without holding back just like how Deuce did, only this time, as soon as Jozu punched Marco, he held him in place and grabbed him by the collar of his opened button up shirt, forcing him to meet his eyes. And with an anger filled tone, he spoke out, loud and clear for everyone to hear, "We can't do that... " emphasising the 'can't'.

Before anyone(Marco) could speak about how Marco shouldn't get special treatment just because he's first mate and commander of the first division, Jozu turned towards the crew and continued, this time, with more guilt in his voice than anyone has ever heard him use, "We can't kill him, because we're just as guilty as he is..." With this, Jozu released Marco, and hung his head, fisting his fists so tightly his knuckles went white, "It's like Deuce had said...We did **nothing** while Ace was in pain, being mistrusted, getting hurt... Ace is the only one who can decide what to do with Marco... "

"Jozu's right..." Vista added, "While we were wasting time feeling sorry for ourselves, our **innocent** , youngest brother was...tortured... suffering more than we were..."

"Fuck..." Atmost swore, "He probably didn't know if Thatch was alive or not..."

"Not until Carlos ran down to inform me that Thatch was awake, yoi..." Marco silently admitted.

...

..

.

2 days after Ace's surgery, Squard's ship arrived, they sailed along the Moby Dick, behind Whitely's ship and Squard demanded to see Thatch and Ace, when he got there, Squard felt a piece of his heart crumble...

"Ace..." he called out, he knew the younger wouldn't wake up with that but still...

Squard strode pass Thatch's bed after checking on his brother, Thatch's abdomen was bandaged up and he seamed to be doing alright. Squard didn't miss the tear tracks though, and was surprised to see no one by him.

He stood beside Ace, who was covered in bandages from head to toe, hooked up to multiple IV's and an oxygen mask, Deuce was sleeping restlessly by him, dark eye bags circled his eyes. Both of them looked thinner than when Squard last saw them...and it made him furious.

Squard remembers all the times he's spent with Ace, they didn't like each other at first, but became great brothers, they'd arm wrestle, drink together, had even fought along side each other...

And it was hurtful to see someone so strong...someone who had saved him in battle before, be...broken...

Tears were in his eyes as he talked to Ace's comatose body, he didn't care about what he was talking about, just hoped that Ace could hear it. Duece woke up at the end of it, and Squard asked if there was any good news, Deuce replied tiredly with, "Well, since you weren't here while Ace was getting tortured wrongly, I'm pretty sure you can justify taking a chunk out of Marco."

"Marco alone did all this?!" Squard asked, outraged, he had respected his cool headed commander, but this is insane!

Duece let out a hollow laugh, "He was the only other one that visited."

Squard said no more as he stood up abruptly and went out, in search of Marco.

His own crew were talking with other brothers, so he grabbed one of them and asked them where the hell Marco was, they shook in fear before replying that they didn't know, only that Whitely was with him.

He let go of them, and searched for someone -who wasn't a commander- who knew where the blue fire chicken was.

When he did find him, it was in the training room, and he LOVED what he saw in there.

Whitely Bay, one of the most talented doctors he's ever met, was using Marco as a punching bag. She had Marco's arms chained to the ceiling as she punched and kicked him in all the right places. Marco had a sea stone ring on, and so he couldn't heal.

But when Squard got closer, he started feeling the pain with each step he took...Whitely had tears in her eyes, the Ice Queen, had tears in her eyes...

She was disappointed in Marco, she was upset and down right disgusted in what he had done to Ace, to her beloved son!

Sure, he wasn't her biological son, and she knew she could **NEVER** replace Rouge, but she still saw Ace as her son...it may be selfish of her, but he made her experience how having a son would have been like...

Whitely told Marco about it as she punched him, just to drill it in on how WRONG he was about Ace, she told him of the first time she had met the young, ravine haired, freckled teen, she wanted to make a big entrance for the new recruits, and had used the ropes of the sails on her ship to swing across to the Moby Dick, and afterwards used the ropes from the Moby Dick to really make a splash, to inform everyone on deck that she, the Ice Queen was there.

She told Marco about how brightly Ace's eyes had shown -like stars- when he saw her grand entrance, told him about how Ace had asked her to teach him that, told him of how fast a learner Ace was and how much fun it was to swing with him on the ropes of the sails. She told him of their second meeting in battle, protecting one of their protected islands from a fleet of pirates who wanted their valuable resources, she told him of how Ace had watched her back, and wouldn't run when she had told him to, how he had fought by her side even though they were out numbered and evenly powered.

She told him of all her meetings with Ace, but the one that stabbed Marco, Whitely and Squard the most, was of when Ace was on a mission on a spring island. The island was full of children, and Whitely was depressed that she couldn't get pregnant, that she was fucking sterile! And she had told Ace, who had asked her why exactly she couldn't bare child, and after her explanation, he went off, she told Marco about how she didn't know why or where Ace went, but then Ace came back to get her and it was all clear.

"It was mother's day on that spring island! And he brought me to dinner! Gave me a Happy Mother's Day card with flowers!! The flowers clashed with each other, but they were beautiful nonetheless! And then, you know what Ace told me? Can you guess what that sweet cinnamon bun told me? He told me Happy Mother's Day!! And that I was an AMAZING person!! He told me he never got to meet his mom since she died of child birth, but if he had one, he imagined she'd be like me!!" And she broke down for awhile after that, before giving Marco a punch that dislocated his jaw.

And then she continued to tell Marco about Ace, about the other meetings after that, about how one night, when she finally successfully managed to get Ace drunk using sea stone, that she got him to actually call her mom! And it was selfish of her, but she wanted Ace all to herself, to hold and to actually be a mother to, she loved Ace, he was so bright, so strong, so kind, so brave and so odly polite. But she saw the demons in his head, and wanted to chase them all away, protect Ace and allow him the motherly love that he had never had, that he was stollen of. "And what's more? You, Marco the fucking phoenix! I've watched his eyes as you walk by, and you have no idea of the PTSD he'll no doubt go through because it was YOU who collapsed his lungs, broke his bones and drove him into a coma! You nearly robbed me of my chance of telling Ace thank you for giving me the experience to be a mother!!"

And after that...her legs gave out and she started sobbing on the floor, "H-he might not even w-wake up!"

Her words held a weight that couldn't be lifted by mortal hands, Whitely has **never** said something like that...Her sobs echoed in the room, and continued on until late evening. She didn't spare Squard a glance as she walked off, chin high, but shaking towards the showers.

When she was gone, Squard took a long look at Marco, who layed limb, hanging from the ceiling. Marco was covered in bruises, even his bruises had bruises, and his jaw was still dislocated.

He wasn't gonna lie, he did feel bad for the blonde, but he remembers what said blonde had done to Ace, and instead of punching him like Whitely did, he took off the sea sone ring, and before Marco could say anything, he stabbed him in the heart.

Blue flames bursted to life, but Squard held his sword where it was, and twisted it. "I hope you can feel this, Marco...THIS is what I'm feeling right now..." He pulled out his sword and swung it, so that the blood got off of it, "But it's nowhere near what Whitely is feeling...or how Oars will feel when he sees what you've done to Ace..." With that, he walked away, leaving Marco in his little bubble of self pity.

...

..

.

Squard left the same day that he came, going back to make sure protected islands were safe, but Whitely had decided to stay until Ace woke up and then some.

A day after Squard left, Doma's ship came into view, and so did the DeCalvan Brothers.

Doma was first to board the Moby Dick, and he had rushed to the infirmary at once. He saw Thatch and sighed in relief before turning towards Ace and paling. By coincidence, Whitely happened to be changing Ace's bandages at that time, and Doma got to see Ace's healing scars that littered his body.

And Doma couldn't believe it...Ace, who had defeated him and his crew...looked to be on his death bed...  
He walked closer, and when he did, the ever present monkey on his shoulder crawled down and onto Ace's bed. Doma didn't like what he saw, he didn't like the fact that the Whitebeards have wrongly accused a **COMMANDER** of all people, didn't they only appoint people whom they fully, wholeheartedly trust?

The DeCalvan Brothers entered the room as Doma stood there, watching Whitely bandage Ace. The two brothers smiled when they saw Thatch awake, they made their way towards him and greeted him, Thatch greeted back, "How're ya feeling, bro?" One twin asked.

"Well, I'm alive, awake, and healing..." Thatch replied monotoned, his gaze shifting towards Ace.

The two followed his gaze, and rushed over to Ace when they saw him. "Ace, bro!" They both called out, "How did this happen? Is he gonna be alright?!" They turned to Whitely.

She looked out of it still, but never stopped working on Ace's bandages, "He'll live." She answered, "Marco's in training room 1."

Doma and the two twins shared confused looks, then walked back towards Thatch and asked him for a full explanation, Thatch looked hurt as he told them what had happened while he was in a coma, and as he told them, the tears came back...  
"A-and what I can't believe... is that everyone else did absolutely NOTHING while Ace was alone in there, the only ones who visited him were Deuce and Marco! None of the other commanders wanted to see him...it wasn't like I was going anywhere, but noooooo, they were just sorry for themselves for not being there when I got stabbed by that backstabbing traitor Teach as Ace rushed to **SAVE M** E! They didn't even hear Ace's side of the story..." Thatch finished, and sniffed loudly to prevent anymore mucus from leaking out.

"Is that why you're here by yourself?..." Doma asked, all of them looking "I...I can't see them now...I wish I'd had woken up faster, or that I'd had been more cautious, if I hadn't turned my back to Teach...none of this would've happened..." Thatch sobbed.

It hurt Whitely, Doma and the two twins to see, Thatch, who was always so happy and bright was blaming himself... when it was all Marco's and the crew's fault that Ace was in a coma...

Whitely slammed the tray she was holding down onto the table, drawing everyone's attention, "If anyone's to blame, it's the turkey who actually did this." She pointed at Ace, and Doma waited no longer to leave the infirmary, the DeCalvan brothers following behind.

They headed to training room 1, not sparing anyone, any distractions, glances. When they got there, Marco was hanging from the ceiling, chained up and sea stone ring on.

Doma didn't like it, and neither did the DeCalvan brothers. The three got Marco down from there, who protested that he didn't deserve better. "You don't deserve this, you deserve worst. But isolation is a form of torture, and we don't do that." The monkey on Doma's shoulder agreed.

"We're gonna beat you up though." The twins both said that and punched their fists together in unison.

They unchained Marco and just as Marco felt his flames come to life, Doma slashed him, while the monkey on his right shoulder shot at him with a pistol, mear moments later the DeCalvan Brothers slashed him with their claws.

Marco let them punch, kick, slash and shoot him, his flames bursting to life to heal every wound that was inflicted on him. They continued for a solid 2 hours before Doma swong the blood off his blades, and stared at his reflection on the steal. As he did so, the twins stopped as well, and shot questioning glances at him.

"Tired already, Doma?" One of them asked.

Doma shook his head and let out a sigh with closed eyes. "No...it's just...I can't believe the person who made me and my crww surrender before... is..." He didn't finish his words, instead, he bit his bottom lip and held it between his teeth. He was frowning as he did so, and the monkey on his shoulder looked just as upset as it's captain did.

"Ace bro was really strong..." Another twin added, emphasizing the 'was'. "Ya remember when we fought against Thatch 2 to 1? And then Ace joined in and together they both kicked our asses?"

"How can I forget!" The other twin replied, "We almost had Thatch!!"

The two twins smiled, but the happy memory soon faded into darkness... into the image of Ace, hurt, and in a coma on the infirmary bed...

"Why did you do it?" The three asked in unison, all eyes on Marco, who was staring at the ground.

"I..." Marco swallowed the lump in his throat, "I had convinced myself that it was him, yoi..."

His answer was far from satisfying, "That's all, Commander?" His title was basically used as a mockery. "You tortured a 20 year old for how long?! Until he got into a fucking COMA just because you had **convinced** yourself that he was a traitor?!" Doma stated it as a question, but it was far from that, and they all knew it...

Marco didn't reply, he was tired of the guilt, but he knew he deserved it...why **did** he torture Ace? He couldn't find a logical explanation himself...

The 'fight' continued for another hour, before they brought Marco up to the mess hall, they made him sit at the commander's table and eat in front of his family once more. Marco's head was down in shame, and he barely touched his food, but the majority of brothers were more worried about him than actually wishing his bloody murder. Even pops wanted to help his first son, but doing so...it would go against the rules, wouldn't it? It would be seen as playing favourites, wouldn't it? But...he couldn't just sit here...

Edward Newgate, 'The Strongest Man in the World', one of the yonko, felt powerless at this moment. Once again, he can only sit on the sideline's while a son is hurting...

...

..

.

A week later, they arrived at an uninhabited island in New World waters. It was a small island, but it had lush forests and wide expansions of land, perfect for Little Oars Jr.

The little Pirate's ship was docked at the beach when they got there, and Oars's familiar strawhat came to view. Said giant wasted no time to reach them and ask them questions about Ace.

"Oars." Oyaji called out, "I need you to sit still and listen."

Oars did just that, but it didn't last long when the truth was shared to him, his large frame trembled as he asked, practically begged to see Ace, even if he was still deep in a coma, he just wanted to see his friend, his brother...

He was allowed to look through the med bay's pot hole, and the sight of Ace's bandaged, pale form caused a pain, so great that it drove the abnormally large giant to his knees.

Oars weeped and moaned for his friend, the one who gave him a great gift, the brother who made him a strawhat to battle the heat, rain and cold...

"ACCCEEEEEEEEE!!!!" He cried, fat tears streamed down his red face, slowly making a lake under every mountain he crushed. The once bountiful forests were trampled upon in his agony, "ACEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!" He sounded so hurt, and it was painful for them to hear, let alone watch.

Oars's voice echoed through the entire ship, reaching every inch, even reaching the ocean and chasing fish away. Animals and bugs alike ran for their lives, away from the weeping giant.

The cries lasted for the entire day, only coming to a stop in the late evenings, when the sun met the sea... "Ace..." his voice cried, "Ace..."

Oars repeated Ace's name countless times that day, all the while, remembering what he meant to him, what he has done for him, not just as someone who sails under the same father, but as a brother. As a friend, who actually cared...

.

..

...

_'Damn, it must be hot.'_

_'Hmm?'_

_'Well, you're closer to the sun!'_

_'Hmm...well it is hot...'_

_'Here, Oars! Put this on!'_

_'What's this?'_

_'It's a strawhat, or a Kasa! I learnt to make it when we visited Wano!'_

_'You should've seen Ace making it, he burnt two!'_

_'H-hey!!'_

_'Haha! It's not so hot anymore!'_

_'Oars! Get in! It's snowing!'_

_'It's alright, this hat protects me from the snow, I don't feel cold!'_

_'Oars! Get in, it's raining!'_

_'It's alright! This hat protects me from the rain, I'm not getting wet!'_

_'Oars! You still staying out in this heat?'_

_'It's alright! My hat protects me! I don't feel hot at all!'_

_'I love this hat!'_

_'Oars!'_

...

..

.

After the giant had calmed down, Marco made his way off the ship, shrugging off arms that had tried to grab for him. The other commanders didn't try to hold him back after their pops told them to let him go, so Marco was able to make his way, flying over to Oars. He had caused everyone great pain, and he could never truely redeem himself, but he will accept all punishment, all the hate, all the consequences...

"Oars..." Marco called out, the giant didn't seam to hear him, so he called out again, louder this time, "Oars!"

Said giant lifted his head slightly, just enough to see Marco, he didn't say anything, he was tired, exhausted. Both physically and mentally.

Oars's eyes widened when he admitted, "I was the one who had done that to Ace, yoi..." His voice was covered in guilt and regret, "No one at all will hold it against you if you'd want to drown me, crush me, tear me limb from limb...I have a sea stone ring to make that plausible and-"

"No..."

Marco was cut off by Oars, whose voice sounded weak and horsed compared to before. The giant pushed himself up and off the hard ground, his kasa sliding onto his back. He sat up and stared down at Marco's smaller, much smaller form. Marco tried to protest, but Oars shook his head, a layer of fresh tears moistened his eyes, threatening to spill over at anytime.

"Ace wouldn't do that...I won't do that either..."

Marco stared, wide eyed at the greenish-yellow giant, but said giant was looking at the setting sun... _'don't tell him I said that!'_  
Ace's voice reverberated in his head.

"Ace loves you too much to hate you..." his voice broke at the end, and this time, the giant weeped silently into the night.

.

..

...

The following days after meeting with Oars were met with even more silence. The deck had never felt more ghostly, everyone was upset. Shame, regret, guilt, pain, all the bad emotions permitted the air. But not anger, none of the whitebeards could feel anger at anyone other than themselves for not lifting a finger for Ace, for not helping their baby brother, and most of all...for ever suspecting that he was a traitor in the first place.

The only one on that ship who felt anger at someone else, was Bay, and she had a pretty damn good reason to. Whitely continued to watch over Ace, she checked him over seven times a day, for any signs of waking, and everyday, her heart breaks at the negative...

It wasn't long after that that the former spades begged to meet up to go see their former captain together. The once Spade Pirates still loves their captain dearly, he was the reason that they were all here afterall.

Ace had saved them all, from a hurricane surrounded island, to the cage in which one of them lived in. Kotatsu misses the warmth that their captain would radiate, and the absence of such warmth was a pain so cold, no amount of affection could melt...

They were given permission, and sister ships met up with the main ship, the former Spade Pirates hugged in a teary reunion, all of them silent as they made their way to their former captain. To Ace...

...

..

.

Thatch was discharged two months after he had woken up, and he spent the first week 'taking it easy' in the kitchen.

He no longer played pranks, no longer laughed with abundance, no longer could he look his brothers in the eye. Not even his father...

Thatch felt guilty that he didn't wake up earlier, that he hadn't seen, hadn't felt Teach's ill intent. He was trying to work everything out inside his head...but it was hard.

He loves his family, he loves his brothers. But they had wronged his youngest brother, had allowed his torture, had caused him to literary lose his life...

The thought brought tears to his eyes, but he felt numb after all this time. And he wasn't the only one either...

.

..

...

On the third month, Whitely was visibly happier, or rather, more determined. Her eyes that were cold and blank were now filled with a fire that had dimmed considerably the past three months.

The whole ship were in anticipation for what she would tell them, but she never said a word. Not until oyaji himself asked.

And her only response, "He's waking up."

...

The silence that came afterwards was deafening, everyone present at the time took that piece of information to heart, and as soon as their brains processed it, they erupted in joy. "He's waking up!! Ace is waking up!!!" They would yell, joyously.

"He's gonna wake up!!"

"Ace is gonna wake up!!!"

The line passed like wild fire, leaving hope and joy in its wake. Relief was felt by every brother, every sister, and most of all, by the former Spade Pirates, by Thatch, by their father and by Marco.

During the week in which the news was announced, everyone begged to have a turn to watch over Ace, they wanted to be the first to greet him, to see his eyes finally open and to hug him. But what was left unsaid, is that they all wanted to beg for forgiveness... deep down, they feared that Ace would reject them, that he'd sail off, that he'd leave them...

And that thought haunted their dreams, but even so, it wouldn't dim the newly kindled fire in their hearts.

...

Marco too wanted to see Ace...even if it's for one last time, he wishes to see Ace while he looks peaceful, and not when no doubt, he'd scorn Marco's very existence, or worst...fear it...

So, even though he knows Whitely doesn't want anything to have to do with him, let alone see him, he braves himself and walks into the infirmary. Everyone cleared out when they noticed him, they didn't know how to feel, but they didn't know if they could stop him either...

Thatch was there when Marco managed to slip past Whitely, and the chief looked over Marco, taking in the blonde's appearance, before standing up and walking away. Not before patting him on the shoulder and hissing out, " **Never** hurt him again."

He didn't give Marco a chance to reply before he was gone, standing guard at the door.

Marco took the seat that Thatch had vacated. He looked down at Ace's thinner form, and took in his appearance. Ace looked better than when he last saw him three months ago. He was no longer sickly pale, he didn't need machines to breathe and although there were multiple IV drips inserted into him, he really looked as if he was only asleep, and could wake up at any moment...

"Ace..." Marco started, fisting his hands with each other, "I can't begin to tell you how sorry I am, yoi. But I didn't come for forgiveness, nor do I expect any... I know you probably hate me, and that I'm the last person who you want to see or have see right now, but..." The tears that Marco fought to hold back for three months were beginning to spill, "I don't know what to do...I should be dead right now for what I've done to you, I should be...but I hope you'd forgive me just this once, I don't even know why I did it anymore, yoi  
..but I know that's no excuse, because I **did** do it...I did this to you, I had...I had killed you..."

The room echoed his sobs, but Marco felt worst for crying at all, he didn't deserve forgiveness, didn't deserve to live on when Ace had died. But still...he wants Ace to forgive him...he's selfish like that...

A deep breath caused him to still, as he looked to the bed Ace was on. Like magic, Ace's eyes opened, slowly and sluggishly. They closed instantly and Marco shot up, hoping he hadn't hallucinated seeing it. All of a sudden, Ace's eyes blinked open again, and he got the glass of water from the side table, got a piece of tissue and dipped it in, wetting it. He used it to rub on Ace's eyes, helping the dryness go away, then slowly helped Ace sit up to drink the water.

Ace said nothing for awhile, he was frowning with his eyes darting around. Marco gulped, "Ace, yoi?" He called out apprehensively.

Ace turned towards Marco, looking confused and out of it, Marco's eyes widened when he asked, "Who am I?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There may or may not be a part three. And if there is, I hope y'all won't mind the wait. This is one of my saddest works. Stay safe!❤️


	3. First Mate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Time for a lil bit of happiness.

"Who am I?"

Those three words hung in his head for a solid minute. Amnesia. It wasn't impossible, heck, everyone was expecting it, but...to this scale? _'Let's not jump to conclusions yet.'_

Ace was frowning as his eyes darted to every object, watching his surroundings carefully, as if he was trying to make out what they were exactly. "Where am I?" His eyes shifted back towards Marco.

But before Marco could try and form a reply in his head, the door was opened, and Thatch's pompadoured head peaked in, "Ace...?" His eyes widened in bewilderment. Thatch stumbled into the room, eyes fixed on Ace, "You're awake..." With each step he took, tears threatened to spill.

 _'He's awake...he's awake!!'_ Thatch thought, it was when he touched him, when his hand went down to cup Ace's slim face, when he allowed himself to cry. "Ace!! Oh my god, I'm so sorry!! It's my fult, if only I-I had woken up sooner, if only I hadn't fucking turned my back! I'm so sorry!!" He weeped.

"Is that my name?" Ace asked, confused beyond belief. His brows were still furrowed in confusion as his hands hovered over Thatch's form that had went to hug him.

"W-what?" Thatch questioned, lifting his head to look into stormy grey eyes.

"He lost his memories, yoi..." Marco supplied, a look of understanding still on his face.

Ace frowned harder, he wanted answers, damn it! "Is that my name? Ace?"

A look of realisation crossed over Thatch's features, and he looked back into stormy eyes, now holding a spark he had missed for far too long, "Yes!" He shot up, reaching for both of Ace's hands, _'Gods they've become so thin...'_ "You're name is Portgas D. Ace."

Ace nooded, "Where am I? And who are you people?" He turned his gaze between Marco and Thatch, before settling on Thatch, whose eyes were still moist with tears of joy.

Thatch pulled over an extra chair with his right hand, before taking Ace's hand back into his and turned towards Marco, "Go get Bay." His tone changed for Marco, becoming strict, cold even. Said man nodded and left, though hesitantly.

Ace didn't miss the change, and was feeling uneasy..."What happened to me?" His voice was coated in worry, but Thatch smiled at him.

"It's alright, Ace. My name's Thatch. We're brothers," His hands tightened around Ace's _'I hope we're still brothers...'_ , "And you're on the Moby Dick, it's a ship that we sail on." _'I can't say 'home' anymore, can I?'_ "We have adventures all the time, as we sail the seas from island to island."

Ace nodded hesitantly, "What's... brother? And...ship?"

Thatch felt his already broken heart crack more, "A brother... it's-" His breath hitched as he averted his gaze, "It's...I..." _'What do I say? What can I say? Do I really get to call myself his older brother anymore?...'_

Thatch was nearly hyperventilating at this point, as thoughts of guilt swallowed his mind, but Ace reached out a hand Thatch was holding on to, and lifted his chin to get eye contact back, "H-hey..." Ace shuttered, "It's alright...you don't have to answer or anything, just... calm down a bit?..."

His words sent Thatch into a state of shock, _'Oh how undeserving we are of him...why him...how could we have done this?...'_ Thatch sniffed loudly and shook his head, "No...I'm OK, it's just...I don't know if I can call myself your brother anymore... I...I'm supposed to protect you as a big brother, as _family..._ a-and yet... this happened to you...because of _me_..."

Ace frowned, "Did you mean to do this?"

"No!" Thatch exclaimed, "Gods no, never! I-"

Ace silenced him by placing his whole hand over Thatch's mouth, "Then it's alright."

And for the first time since he'd woken up, Ace gave Thatch a smile, it wasn't as bright as all the others before...but it was still a smile, a genuine one. And it brought back the tears in Thatch's eyes, "Thank you..." He hugged him again.

It felt as if a huge burden was taken off his chest, and he felt so much better. But at the same time, he felt the guilt at the back of his mind, telling him he didn't deserve to be forgiven while Ace didn't remember jack shit.

"So..." Ace started, "Can you tell me what happened?" Ace asked.

Thatch bit his lips and nodded, but before he could start, the door was opened in a rush, and in came Whitey. Her eyes found Ace's as soon as she had entered and her cold facade crumbled, along with her as she stumbled just like Thatch into the room and kneeled on Ace's bed, bringing him into a hug, whispering sweet words and, "I'm so happy you're awake!"

"H-hi...?" Ace looked to Thatch for answers, but Whitey was quick to act.

"Ace, follow my finger." She held out her index finger and moved it around, Ace followed it with his eyes, she then nodded and got up to grab a board by the table, telling Thatch to get a seat, and then she started Ace's examination. Checking him over thoroughly.

Once she was done with the basics, she moved on to asking Ace questions, "Do you remember anything? Your age, for example?"

Ace shook his head, "I only know that my name is Ace because Thatch told me so."

Whitey nodded and wrote it down.

"Who are you?" Ace asked.

Hurt flashed in Whitey's eyes before she told him a short summary of who she was, she's overjoyed that he's awake, but having someone so important to her forget all about her...was still so fucking painful...

Ace ended up falling asleep again after an hour, which Whitely assured Thatch was normal, "His body's still healing. In fact, him staying awake for an hour alone is a medical miracle."

"Is there anything I can do? Maybe some extremely light but nutritious soup?" Thatch asked.

Whitey nodded and gave Thatch a short list before Thatch got to work preparing the soup, knowing Ace's unique body, he'll heal faster than normal.

And to help it along, he'll need food. For now, they'll keep him on a strict liquid base only diet before giving him softer foods and then finally introducing him to solid foods again.

Whitely didn't want to leave Ace's side, and so she didn't. Others had tried to get into the room to see Ace, but she didn't let a single one enter the room.

There was no fucking way she'll let any of them besides Thatch and Deuce in. _'All of them lost the right to Ace the moment they failed him.'_

By the end of the day, everyone stopped trying and instead, wallowed in guilt again. Although they **were** happy to know that Ace woke up...

...

..

.

A day later and Ace was enjoying his soup. Thatch had boiled multiple vegetables and meats for long periods of time before he filtered it out multiple times, making sure that only pure liquids got through.

It was light but filling at the same time and was perfect for Ace's recovery. He had went through starvation before and this was doing wonders for his digestive system.

That very same day, when Thatch was bringing back Ace's dishes, he found Deuce hunched over outside the door by the side of it.

He looked pale and defeated, which made Thatch's heart ache... it was doing a lot of that lately...

Thatch called out to the blue haired, masked man, but Deuce didn't respond. He did so again and shook his shoulder afterwards and he looked up.

"What?..." Deuce asked, voice horsed and eyes bloodshot. He had dark eye bags and he was the picture of death itself, and it shocked Thatch.

"Ace is awake, why aren't you in there with him? And moreover, why do you look like this? Come on." Thatch pulled the masked man up and half carried him towards the kitchen.

He got him a glass of water and a bowl of soup, the one that hadn't been filtered. The vegetables in it were soft enough for a baby to eat and it tasted heavenly, however everything tasked like nothing to Deuce.

"What's wrong? Why haven't you visited Ace yet? You're just about the only other person who Whitely will let in." Thatch asked frowning.

"I..." Deuce's voice broke, "I can't face him...never again, I-I..." The man broke into tears, but Thatch could tell that his body was dehydrated...so he got him another glass of water and urged him to drink from it. "I **failed** him..."

Thatch could see that nothing he say could convince Deuce otherwise, but he did instead hug him. It's funny how a simple gesture can warm up others and yourself both physically and mentally.

Deuce calmed down a lot after that, and returned the tight embrace. "You should at least go visit him, maybe when he's asleep? Either way, both Whitey and I are grateful to you."

"W-hy?" Deuce choked out.

"Because, out of everyone who knew what Ace was going through, you were the only one who believed in him and tried to help him. In fact, I heard Whitey muttering about how it was a miracle Ace's body hadn't eaten out a hole in him, and I know for a fact that someone had been raiding the pantry."

Deuce's breath hitched, "R-really?"

"Yeah, really, really."

"That's good to hear...But I...I still had doubts sometimes... and I hadn't been getting Ace enough..." Deuce admitted.

But Thatch shook his head while still hugging on to Deuce, "I also know for a fact that if you had taken anymore, someone would've found out and then you wouldn't be able to do a thing for Ace. Well, except being there for him."

"I...I wish I could've done more..."

"I know..."

"I should've risked it and done more..."

"You would've been putting both your and Ace's life in danger doing that."

"It wouldn't have mattered... as long as Ace was OK... and he's-"

"He's alive and awake. You were there for him when neither Whitey or I could."

Deuce fell silent after that, but his mind was still telling him he had failed. "I need to get stronger."

Thatch took in a deep breath and let it out, "Me too."

.

..

...

Deuce braced himself, he could hear Thatch and Ace's laughter through the private infirmary room's door. He couldn't sleep last night, yesterday's talk with Thatch replying in his head too many times, but he had finally found the courage to meet Ace. He both needed and wanted to see the other again. He didn't want to regret letting Ace slip from him, ever.

He took in a deep breath, closing his eyes, and then letting it out while opening his eyes with new resolve. His hand went to turn the door handle, and he pushed it open.

Time seemed to stop for him as his eyes caught Ace's, oh how he had missed those stormy grey orbs that held the fire that drew him to Ace.

"Deuce?" The ravine muttered his name, and looks of shock crossed over Whitey and Thatch's faces, but Deuce paid them no mind, he could only see Ace, and his knees gave out as soon as he had closed the door and dragged his feet to Ace's bed. There, he sobbed as he kept his eyes on Ace, the other reaching his hands to hover over him. "I...know you..." Ace frowned.

Ace's head came up blank when he tried to recall where he had seen this man before, but the name and emotions were there, he frowned when Deuce started apologising and called himself a failure, "No, stop it! You're not a failure! I don't remember anything... but I know that I can trust you, and you're important to me, so there's no way any of this is your fault!"

Thatch had given Ace the simplified version of the story to Ace, Whitey telling him to do so in order to prevent him from stressing. Ace was only just starting to be able to stay awake for long periods of times, and they had decided that they would tell him the full version once he got more healthier.

Deuce didn't stop crying, "I should've done more, I should have tried to save you! I should have been there when you passed out, when you-" his breath hitch, making him unable to continue.

"When I died?" Ace continued for him. Deuce hung his head in shame, and his sobs only grew, he felt as if Ace was disappointed in him, he felt like a failure still, and gods did it hurt. _'I deserve this, this pain is my punishment.'_

Whitey had started writing on Ace's medical board and Thatch stood to the side, he didn't want to intrude on their time. Deuce needed to know that none of this was his fault, and he knew that Ace could help the other just like he had done so for him.

"Deuce," Ace started, "I... I don't remember you, but...I remember your name, and the...feelings?" Ace was visibly confused, but he was trying, "I'm not too sure, when I saw you, I felt as if I had found a missing piece, so...Thank you!" Ace smiled and laughed a little.

And gods did Deuce miss that smile, along with the evening light shining on him from the pothole, it was as if an angle was looking right at him with a genuine smile. _'Fuck of course he'd forgive me...he's always been like this, even on Sixis when I had tried to kill him over a fruit...'_

Deuce's sobs became silent, his tears of joy, as he hugged his former Captain. He no longer apologized, and instead started his chain of gratitude.

Ace laughed awkwardly, but returned the gesture. "So, um...can you tell me about yourself or something? I'd like to remember."

"Of course!" Deuce exclamed, starting his...no...their story. He was at the part where he was telling Ace about how they had realised the fruit they had eaten was actually a logia fire type devil fruit called the Mera Mera No Mi when Ace's entire left arm bursted into flames, Ace yelping in shock and freight.

The youngest frantically swung his arm up and down to try and put out the flames, but it only spread.

"Ace! Ace, calm down!! It's alright, it won't burn you!" Deuce stated. Thatch had ran out to get water while Whitey was trying to help calm Ace down.

Ace snapped out of it and stared at Deuce, before staring at his flames, noticing how they weren't burning him, but instead **was** him.

"Wow..." Ace breathed out, "Do all devil fruit eaters turn into fire?"

Ace asked as Whitey patted Ace's arms with a thick blanket, putting the fires out. Ace's blanket was scorched but those can be replaced.

"Well no. All devil fruits are different, but there are similar ones." Deuce told. Thatch came back in with two full jugs of water and set them down after being told Ace's fires had already been put out.

Deuce then started telling Ace about devil fruits before Ace yawned and Whitey told Ace to get some rest. "He's still healing, he needs more time to recover so he'll be asleep most of the day."

"I wanted to know more..." Ace muttered, sleep taking over.

"I know, you two can continue your conversation tomorrow. Now sleep." Bay whispered softly, getting Ace a new blanket.

Deuce bid Ace a good rest and went out of the infirmary with Thatch, his chest feeling so much lighter than it had been for months, and a smile was on his face.

"Told ya so!" The pompadour man chuckled.

Deuce nodded to the cook and stated, "I want Ace to meet the other former Spade Pirates, it might just help with his memory."

"Good idea!" Thatch exclaimed, "Ask Whitey first, and..." Thatch grimaced before sighing, "Ask for permission."

Thatch didn't say "from oyaji" because he still couldn't bring himself to. Perhaps it's cowardly of him to run from everyone and ignore them at the same time, but he just couldn't forgive them... not yet...

Deuce only nodded, he didn't say anything but the words, "He'd forgive them." Layed on his tongue, like a bad aftertaste.

Ace is too forgiving to those he loves, as long as no one hurts his family and friends, he can be a great guy. But when it comes to himself...and aside from Garp, no one close to Ace has ever hurt him before...

How would Ace take this betrayal?

Would he really be forgiving?...

Or...would he leave?

If he were to leave, Deuce, Thatch and the former Spades would follow.

...

..

.

A week later and Ace could control his devil fruit like he could before. His arms could move like he wants them to and Whitey decided it was time for him to try and stand. His legs needed to regain it's strength now that it's healed more.

The former Spades were all arriving that day, so Whitey only helped Ace stand and sit down, as well as walk out slowly so he doesn't overwork and get tired.

His lungs had almost completely closed up the puncher wounds, and his ribs were healing nicely. No more broken ones, only fractured. Normally these things would take much longer, but hey... Ace is a D.

Ace could now move onto other goods instead of strictly liquid now too, like mashed carrots, potatoes, and anything that's soft. He was excited to try his favourite food, according to Thatch one day. He doesn't know why he liked ghost peppers, Thatch said they burned, but one day for sure. Not now since spicy foods remove the mucus lining in his stomach and could cause stomach ulcers, maybe in a month though.

Meeting so many people was a new experience for Ace, especially since they had to exit his small private room and out onto the huge main infirmary. Everyone present were Spades, Thatch and Whitey. Any injured crew were closer to the infirmary entrance so they couldn't hear what they were saying.

Whitey's especially disappointed in the nurses who are supposed to take care of the wounded, especially Whiskey, head nurse on the crew.

The Spades had a blast together, Skull requested they played a game Ace used to dominate in, Poker. They had a lot of fun playing and teaching Ace again after they introduced everyone.

"I'm gonna have difficulties remembering so many names..." Ace said sheepishly.

"No worries! Take your time, Ace." Saber, the third member of the Spades smiled.

Ace was learning fast, like he always does. He started out knowing absolutely nothing, even the bed he layed on was unknown to him. But After Deuce, Thatch and Whitey found out, they pointed out everything in Ace's room and told him about them. They even brought in a few books to teach Ace how to read again.

Whitey noted that Ace will be able to recall things after certain things are explained to him, like colours. Ace was slowly "remembering" in a way, so Whitey had hopes for him. It was now confirmed that Ace would be able to remember things, perhaps at a faster paste now too.

At the end of the day, Banshee requested they sleep together on the infirmary floor, she may seem rough outside, but she's really caring and compassionate inside.

Whitey allowed it, as long as they placed the mattress back onto the infirmary bed when morning comes, and Ace and the Spades cheered in happiness. He really likes eveyone he's met so far.

Whitey made sure Ace was comfortable, he still had an IV drip in his left arm, and he still couldn't move around like he used to. Deuce vowed to make sure Ace was alright through the night, so Whitey spent the night finalising everything else and havibg a restful sleep for once. Thatch on the other hand, decided to join the former Spades in their little slumber party.

All in all, their little bubble just grew, and it was warm in there.

Outside though...  
Outside that bubble, things were getting green.

.

..

...

Somewhere in East Blue, a Strawhat wearing teen and his crew are about to go up reverse mountain, a place where water flows upwards due to the seas clashing in that single point. They're about to reach Paradise in the New World.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Things will start to pick up more in the next chapter. Look forward to it😤 I've decided that this is a story I cannot drop.


End file.
